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Monday, October 11, 2010

People and Places that Keep us Healthy

Oh Monday ! I knew you would get here!

Today we kicked off a new unit from Adventures in Learning that will help us learn more about people and places that keep us healthy. We talked about what " healthy" means. We added new songs that were about being healthy - like Five Monkey's Jumping on The Bed.

We also noticed today that more and more leaves are turning colors and falling from the trees.

You wonder what happens to the " junk " that comes into the art center. This was a creation made my Noah today. Pretty cool huh ?

It was muffin tin Monday!

Another thing we did today was work on patterning. We do patterning with toys a lot and colors but today since we were talking about keeping our bodies healthy, we patterned with body movements.

I found this interesting article about WHY we teach patterning.

Fun Family Activities Teach Patterns

By Sugandha JainTopics: Family Activities, Growth and Development

We are surrounded by patterns – the squares in a tile floor, the stripes on a shirt, birds flying in formation. Encouraging children to observe patterns is an important, pre-math skill that helps them make sense of what they see, hear and learn.

Patterns teach children how things work together and allow them to predict what comes next. These skills, in turn, can help children become problem solvers.

Many college math professors feel that all students would benefit from a solid understanding of patterns right from childhood. The importance of strong mathematics skills means children will perform better throughout school and even in their adult lives.

The human brain is good at decoding patterns; it can only operate when it finds meaning. Child development research shows that unless we help children find meaning in what they see and experience, learning will not take place. The brain seeks patterns from birth through life. But if you want your child’s brain to work to its maximum, you have to provide the right activities.

We love patterns... especially Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes :) I love the leaves in your yard. We have a lot of evergreen trees, so we don't get many leaves on the ground. We have to walk to the nature area to see and play with leaves. Oh, The Lady Who Swallowed Some Leaves book has a whole line... Swallowed a Bat, a Chick, etc... it reminds me of the The Night Before book series. I love them because I can find one to fit almost any occasion. I got mine pretty cheap through Scholastic Book orders.